Mon
20
Sep '10

Dreamweaver Quick Tip: Optimizing Screen Real Estate

If you’re like me, your screen is never big enough. When I’m working in Dreamweaver, I want to see my code, my design (in Live View) and my CSS panel. The first time I fired up CS5, I created my own customized workspace which you can see below. Basically, it’s just my CSS panel that I have left open. The other couple of panels that I use on a regular basis (Files, Snippets and Insert) I’ve collapsed to their button state.

my own custom workspace

I’ve been using this workspace so long now, that I tend to forget what the default DW workspace even looks like! The only issue that I’ve had is that I still find myself toggling the panels on/off using the F4 keyboard shortcut so that I can see more of the design.

Well, I just found out, that I can keep them toggled close – and still get to what I need quickly! (Head slap here) First, use F4 to toggle your panels off. Now, when you need them, simply move your mouse all the way to the edge of the screen that you’ve hidden the panels – and, viola, there they are! Click back in your page and they hide themselves again.

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Fri
20
Aug '10

Adding HTML5 Video with Dreamweaver CS5

I actually had this post written right before my vacation this summer (the reason for not posting here for 6 weeks!), but somehow managed to lose it. But oh well, the topic is just as hot as ever, as witnessed by several blogposts recently from the likes of the BBC and YouTube. My favorite quote from the YouTube article is “Today, Adobe Flash provides the best platform for YouTube’s video distribution requirements, which is why our primary video player is built with it.” I think that basically sums it up.

For all the excitement surrounding HTML5, it seems that the idea of “replacing Flash” for video delivery is the one that gets everyone going. But, as is pointed out in those two articles (and numerous others), it’s just not that simple – especially as long as there is a hefty majority of users on Internet Explorer 8 and below. If history is any indication, it will be many, many years before those browsers will disappear. (more…)

9 Comments »

Tue
1
Jun '10

Dreamweaver CS5 and HTML5

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know the underlying language of the web, HTML, has begun to (finally) evolve once again with the browsers slowly beginning to support pieces of HTML5 and CSS3. With the release of Dreamweaver CS5, the world’s leading web authoring tool has made huge strides in embracing the evolution of the web, providing an unparalleled ability to style themes for any PHP-based CMS system (WordPress, Drupal and Joomla out of the box, as well as home-grown PHP-based systems). However, for those who have already upgraded and who want to leverage HTML5 and CSS3, you’ve no doubt found that the only “apparent” support for HTML5 in Dreamweaver CS5 is the addition of the HTML5 doctype in the New Document dialog. But now, that’s all changed!

During the keynote session at the Google I/O Conference in San Francisco, Adobe’s CTO, Kevin Lynch, demonstrated an extension to Dreamweaver CS5 which not only adds the new HTML5 semantic elements, but also properties for CSS3, to the authoring environment. With this addition, Dreamweaver CS5 users are provided with code hinting for HTML5 and CSS3 in Code View.

Of course, HTML5 and CSS3 are not “finished” yet, and as such, the team can’t “know” what’s going to be in the final specification. Therefore, the extension provides support for the elements and properties that are “the most complete” at this time. In other words, the elements and properties that, (more…)

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